ABSTRACT
Barnsley Metropolitan Borough Council (BMBC) is a unitary authority, created in 1974 when 14 smaller authorities were amalgamated. The decline of traditional employment in Barnsley revealed structural weaknesses in the local economy. The weak economic position of the UK and of Yorkshire and Humberside in the face of an ever more competitive global economy represents a 'challenge' for Barnsley, but economic 'globalisation' was also seen as an opportunity for regeneration. Consultants argue that because Barnsley is comparatively small, inward investment enquiries are better handled at the sub-regional, or the regional levels. Partnerships in Barnsley developed only as a consequence of the economic difficulties and political change in the Labour Party. Business leaders who were active in Barnsley in the 1980s shared a similar perspective on the emergence of partnerships. The first major regeneration partnership involving BMBC was the Deame Valley Partnership (DVP), a blueprint for subsequent partnership working in Barnsley.
